irda questions

["John H. Kim" <jokim@tuna.mit.edu>]

I was saving my money to buy a desktop Internet server but IBM is having
a special offer on the TP701 (search for '701' in comp.sys.laptops for 
more details).  I'm seriously considering getting one of those while
retiring my TP750 mono as a server (complete with built-in UPS :).  The 
701 doesn't have a serial port in it's maximum-portability configuration
so I'm looking into buying an IR port for the 750 (which I can later use
with any desktop system I buy).

How much have you guys with the newer Thinkpads played around with the
infra-red port?  Does it work as a standard serial link?  Can Linux use
it?  Would it be possible to establish a PPP link over it?

(And yes, I know the 750 doesn't have a 16550 UART - a slow connection
will suffice for most of what I do, and if I really need speed I can
just yank out the ethernet card and plug it into the 701)
___________________________________________________________________________
John H. Kim        "A common mistake that people make when trying to design
jokim@mit.edu       something completely foolproof is to underestimate the
jokim@tuna.mit.edu  ingenuity of complete fools." -- Douglas Adams